This World Cocktail Day, explore how India’s bartenders are taking cues from chefs

Food has always been the silent architect of our best memories, but lately, it’s doing more than just sitting on the plate. According to the James Beard Foundation, we are witnessing a ‘co-mingling’ of menus where the line between chef and bartender has effectively vanished. The modern bar cart isn’t just stocked with gin and vermouth anymore; it’s an extension of the larder, filled with ferments, hydrosols, and shrubs. Today’s guests want drinks that taste alive, not just composed, and here’s how bars across the country are achieving that taste.Cocktails from some of India’s best barsIt’s not just a drink, it’s moreYangdup Lama — the man behind some of Delhi’s hottest bars, including Speakeasy, Sidecar and The Brook — says bartenders are increasingly taking cues from chefs as regional storytelling becomes central to cocktail culture. He points out that the shift first began in food, with kitchens exploring local ingredients, preservation techniques and cultural narratives, before making its way behind the bar. “Chefs have long travelled across the country, bringing back insights into local cultures and ingredients. Bartenders are only beginning to do that, since mixology in India is still at a relatively early stage, so many naturally take cues from chefs — and I think that’s a great thing,” says Yangdup Lama.For him, the menu is a collaborative ecosystem where the kitchen’s discoveries become the bar’s foundation and the biggest example is the cohesive menu at The Brook. “At The Brook, our mountain-inspired bar, both the food and cocktails are deeply rooted in Himalayan culture which tells a stronger story. We worked on the menus side side and draw from local ingredients, folklore and traditional techniques. You’ll find Timur (Himalayan peppercorn) jumping from a spicy Jhol Momo broth directly into a tequila-based sour, while ingredients like while Pickled Apricot and Himalayan honey provide the tart, floral backbone for both plates and pours.”And while many bars are chasing social media algorithms, Yangdup is looking towards the larder. “In this industry, everyone is desperate to chase trends just to stay relevant or attract a younger audience. But the goal shouldn’t be to follow a trend; it should be to understand what actually works for you,” he says. According to him, that kind of originality only comes when teams work in sync. “If your people don’t collaborate, you lose out on a lot. Creating a new experience takes the kitchen and the bar working together, constantly exchanging ideas and building something as one team,” he adds.Chakna feeds the bar, so onAt Bombay Daak, the kitchen-to-bar connection is rooted in the hory of the chakna. Chef Niyati doesn’t just provide snacks; she provides the narrative that dictates the drink. treating the bar menu and the food menu as a single, side–side curation, the pantry becomes a tool for storytelling.“A chakna bar was a concept right under our noses, but it required us to curate both menus side–side through the stories people told us. In Mumbai, they gravitate towards Schezwan chutney and chakli, but in Kerala, it’s lime pickle with Tadi. We brought that kitchen logic into the drinks. For me, what stands out is the first and last flavour, which is why our chefs work so delicately with the garnish. We do multiple tastings as a team because we are inspired the food around us, and we want the drink to reflect that same level of culinary detail.”The liquid hook at RaiyaAt Raiya, the inspiration is drawn from the storied courts of Awadh, where hospitality was defined a table so crowded with food you could barely see the wood. They’ve traded the traditional Dastarkhwan for a high-concept bar, but the philosophy remains the same: the drink must be as noble as the dish. The vision, conceptualised founder Prriyam Chauhhan and brought to life alongside mixolog ak — whose experience spans bar cultures across the USA, Chicago and Mexico — blends global technique with a deeply personal cultural lens. Together, they’ve created what they call Royal Cocktail Mixology, where every drink is designed with a royal pairing of food.“Earlier, the Awadhi table was a landscape of flavour where the food was the architecture and the drinks were the soul. We try to recreate that sense of royal involvement today. Cocktails like Hidden Gem and Elixir of Gold are presented like hidden treasures and served in bespoke boxes with edible gold and jewel-like details. We also make it a practice to recommend ‘royal pairings’ to guests — whether it’s our whiskey-based Jewel of Dawn or Whispering Pearl alongside the Borek. It’s inspired the way royal feasts were once experienced, where the food and the drink were always designed to complement each other.”